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- Title
Morphological Evaluation of Supramolecular Soft Materials Obtained through Co-Assembly Processes.
- Authors
Croitoriu, Alexandra; Chiriac, Aurica P.; Rusu, Alina G.; Ghilan, Alina; Ciolacu, Diana E.; Stoica, Iuliana; Nita, Loredana E.
- Abstract
Low-molecular-weight gelators (LMWGs) are compounds with an intrinsic tendency to self-assemble forming various supramolecular architectures via non-covalent interactions. Considering that the development of supramolecular assemblies through the synergy of molecules is not entirely understood at the molecular level, this study introduced a Fmoc-short peptide and four Fmoc-amino acids as building blocks for the self-assembly/co-assembly process. Hence, we investigated the formation of supramolecular gels starting from the molecular aggregation following two triggering approaches: solvent/co-solvent method and pH switch. The complex morphological analysis (POM, AFM, and STEM) offered an insight into the spontaneous formation of well-ordered nanoaggregates. Briefly, POM and AFM images demonstrated that self-assembled gels present various morphologies like dendrimer, spherulite, and vesicle, whereas all co-assembled supramolecular systems exhibit fibrillar morphologies as a result of the interaction between co-partners of each system. STEM study has confirmed that the molecules interact and join together, finally forming a fibrous network, an aspect seen in both self-assembled and co-assembled gels. XRD allowed the determination of the molecular arrangement. The study emphasized that the Fmoc motif protected the amino groups and facilitated gelation through additional π-π interactions.
- Subjects
AMINO acids; STEM education; DENDRIMERS; AMINO group; VESICLES (Cytology)
- Publication
Gels (2310-2861), 2023, Vol 9, Issue 11, p886
- ISSN
2310-2861
- Publication type
Article
- DOI
10.3390/gels9110886